NORFOLK, Va. (Jan. 5) - The Norfolk State Spartans rode a 50-point second half surge to run past visiting Florida A&M, 77-56 in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference men's basketball game at Echols Hall Saturday evening.
The Rattlers (5-11, 1-2 in MEAC) challenged the Spartans early, holding several leads in the first half. Freshman guard Justin Ravenal hit a pair of three-pointers, one that tied the game at 18-18 with 7:54 left, and the second which gave his club a 21-19 lead with 5:56 left in the half.
Center Treavann Warren's layup with 4:04 left in the half gave FAMU its' last lead at 23-21, before Norfolk State closed the half with a 6-0 run for a 27-23 halftime lead.
Norfolk State (6-10, 2-0 in MEAC) pulled away from FAMU in the second half, outscoring the Rattlers, 50-33 to close out the game.
Junior Malcolm Bernard led FAMU with 16 points, nine rebounds and five assists, while sophomore Craig Bowman and freshman Francois Lewis scored 11 points, followed by freshman Justin Ravenal, who finished with nine points, cashing in a trio of three-pointers.
Jeff Short led the Spartans with 15 points and seven rebounds, followed by D'Shon Taylor's double double of 13 points and 11 rebounds. Alex Long rounded out the Spartans' top three with 11 points and five rebounds.
WHAT'S NEXT: The Rattlers will face the Hampton University Pirates on Monday at 8:00 p.m. at the Hampton University Convocation Center.
